IF you haven't already done so - you should make a new "PHOTOSHOP" folder on your H: Drive to store your graphics work. Move your "Happy Face" graphic from yesterday's lesson to it, and open it up in PHOTOSHOP ELEMENTS
The Happy Face uses a FILE FORMAT called PSD (Photo Shop Document) that is ideal for storing graphic work in progress, but the filesizes can be MASSIVE.
PSD characteristics:
Advantage
Disadvantage
Every Layers and Layer Styles is saved and can still be edited
Every PIXEL of your graphic is preserved digitally exactly as it was created
Text Layers can be re-edited
The Filesize can be VERY large
The PSD can't be opened or used by very many other programs
Now try using FILE- SAVE AS (but don't actually save yet)
There are literally DOZENS of diffrerent graphic types available - here are the ones you'll use most often:
PSD is always shown at the top
- It is an "artists" format, but is not compatible with webpages or word processors
GIF is an old standard for webpage compatibility
- Ideal for Illustrations - it allows up to 256 colours in your graphic
- It can make your files very small if you know what you're doing
JPG is perhaps the most popular format on the web these days
- Ideal for digital photos - it allows millions of colours
- Compression is adjustable - trading off filesize for quality
PNG is a "Portable Network Graphic"
- Ideal for Illustrations - comparable but BETTER than GIFS
FORMAT EXERCISE 1. SAVE to different FORMATS
Use FILE - SAVE - AS and try saving your Happy face in EACH of the formats GIF, JPG and PNG to your BTT folder on your H: Drive
Just keep clicking OK to use whatever "settings" are currently displayed in photoshop
2. CHECK THE RESULTS
CHECK THE FILESIZES
Go to your H: Drive in windows where you saved your Happy Face copies
Use RIGHT-MOUSECLICK to examine the properties of each of those file formats.
Write down the filesize in BYTES for each of the four formats you've used so far
CHECK THE QUALITY
Open each of the GIF, JPG and PNG versions in Photosshop Elements
Use the magnifying glass tool to zoom in to 300% and scroll to look at the area between the mouth and the bottom right side
See if you can spot the "flaws" introduced by different file formats (you have to look closely). Which of GIF, JPG and PNG yields the BEST quality?
Record your findings in the chart below - include you name, and be precise!
Photoshop Elements - FILE FORMATS
IF you haven't already done so - you should make a new "PHOTOSHOP" folder on your H: Drive to store your graphics work. Move your "Happy Face" graphic from yesterday's lesson to it, and open it up in PHOTOSHOP ELEMENTS
The Happy Face uses a FILE FORMAT called PSD (Photo Shop Document) that is ideal for storing graphic work in progress, but the filesizes can be MASSIVE.
PSD characteristics:
Now try using FILE- SAVE AS (but don't actually save yet)
There are literally DOZENS of diffrerent graphic types available - here are the ones you'll use most often:
- It is an "artists" format, but is not compatible with webpages or word processors
GIF is an old standard for webpage compatibility
- Ideal for Illustrations - it allows up to 256 colours in your graphic
- It can make your files very small if you know what you're doing
JPG is perhaps the most popular format on the web these days
- Ideal for digital photos - it allows millions of colours
- Compression is adjustable - trading off filesize for quality
PNG is a "Portable Network Graphic"
- Ideal for Illustrations - comparable but BETTER than GIFS
FORMAT EXERCISE
1. SAVE to different FORMATS
Use FILE - SAVE - AS and try saving your Happy face in EACH of the formats GIF, JPG and PNG to your BTT folder on your H: Drive
2. CHECK THE RESULTS
Record your findings in the chart below - include you name, and be precise!